Jack Nevins gives his ACC basketball power rankings heading into week 3 of the 2025-26 season.
Week 2 team of the week: Louisville Cardinals
Week 2 game of the week: No. 12 Louisville vs. No. 9 Kentucky
Week 2 player of the week: Cameron Boozer, Duke
Week 3 matchup of the week: No. 25 Kansas at No. 4 Duke (Nov. 18 – 9 p.m. EST)
Week 3 under-the-radar matchup of the week: Wake Forest at No. 11 Texas Tech (Nov. 20 – 8:30 p.m. EST)
1) Duke Blue Devils
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W at Army (114-59), W vs. Indiana State (100-62)
Next week: vs. No. 24 Kansas (Nov. 18 – 9 p.m.), vs. Niagara (Nov. 21 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: Texas
Bad losses: None
Although the Blue Devils have not seen any ranked opponents during the start of their season, Duke is still 4-0 with freshman Cameron Boozer scoring 35 points against Indiana State and tying the record in Duke basketball history for the second all-time most points scored as a freshman. Duke gets their first test with Kansas on Tuesday.
2) Louisville Cardinals
Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. No. 9 Kentucky (96-88), W vs. Ohio (106-81)
Next week: vs. Cincinnati (Nov. 21 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Kentucky
Bad losses: None
With a quick 4-0 start, Louisville is the real deal. Taking down No. 9 Kentucky at home proved this Louisville team is legit. They are one of the hottest teams in the nation and will be a team to look out for come March.
3) North Carolina Tar Heels
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-)
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Radford (89-74), W vs. North Carolina Central (97-53)
Next week: vs. Navy (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: Kansas
Bad losses: None
With a good win over Kansas to start the season, this gave the Tar Heels some momentum.
Caleb Wilson continues to lead North Carolina and had a double-double, 21 points and 13 rebounds, against North Carolina Central. The Tar Heels have a few more games to improve their record before they face Michigan State and Kentucky in back-to-back games.
4) SMU Mustangs
Last week’s ranking: 8 (+4)
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Murray State (102-91), W vs. Butler (87-85)
Next week: vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Nov. 18 – 8 p.m.), vs. Central Arkansas (Nov. 21 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins: Butler
Bad losses: None
SMU is a team to look out for. They are sneaky and have a lot of depth on their roster. With a close battle with Butler last week, the Mustangs can beat other Power 5 teams and will be a strong team in the ACC during the season.
5) Virginia Cavaliers
Last week’s ranking: 5 (-)
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Hampton (91-53), W vs. Marshall (104-78)
Next week: vs. Northwestern (Nov. 21 – 5 p.m.), vs. Butler (Nov. 23 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
With one of the easier schedules in the ACC, Virginia will be a team to watch going forward. Thijs De Ridder scored 23 points against Marshall, which contributed to their 61-point first-half win over the Herd.
6) Syracuse Orange
Last week’s ranking: 7 (+1)
Record: 3-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Drexel (80-50)
Next week: vs. Monmouth (Nov. 18 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Syracuse basketball looks to be back, and maybe this is finally the year for the Orange. Although without any great competition through the first three games, the Orange have scored 80+ points in each and freshman Kiyan Anthony is the real deal. In just his second start, Anthony scored 18 points, leading the Orange to a victory over Drexel. Syracuse gets a few ranked matchups down the line as they take on Houston and Kansas in Las Vegas during the The Players Festival.
7) Virginia Tech Hokies
Last week’s ranking: 6 (-1)
Record: 4-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. St. Joseph’s (94-59), W vs. Charlotte (84-76)
Next week: vs. Bryant (Nov. 19 – 7 p.m.), vs. Colorado St. (Nov. 26 – 5 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Another team with an easier non-conference schedule, VT handled Charlotte with ease last week as Jailen Bedford posted 21 points. The Hokies should not have a hard time heading into conference play in December.
8) NC State WolfPack
Last week’s ranking: 4 (-4)
Record: 3-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. UNC Greensboro (110-64)
Next week: vs. VCU (Nov. 17 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
NC State will always be solid in the ACC with Will Wade as their head coach, and they have Auburn and Kansas down the line, which will give them some trouble. They have had no trouble through their first three games, while Darrion Williams scored 32 points against UNC Greensboro, leading the Wolfpack.
9) Stanford Cardinal
Last week’s ranking: 17 (+8)
Record: 3-0 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Montana St. (77-68)
Next week: vs. Louisiana (Nov. 18 – 10 p.m.), vs. Seattle (Nov. 21 – 10 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Stanford should have no trouble before conference play starts, as they managed to land no ranked opponent for 10 straight games. They could be a team that continues to stay strong and stay in the middle and closer to the top of the rankings each week.
10) Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Last week’s ranking: 13 (+3)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: L vs. No. 6 Michigan (84-85), W vs. UMass Lowell (109-75)
Next week: vs. No. 15 Texas Tech (Nov. 20 – 8:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Wake Forest forced No. 6 Michigan into overtime last week and tested them to another level. The Demon Deacons would not go away but broke at the last second. They take on Texas Tech this week, which will be another tough test, but with the experience from Michigan, Wake could be able to hold their own against the Red Raiders.
11) Clemson Tigers
Last week’s ranking: 9 (-2)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Morehead St. (83-56), L at Georgetown (74-79)
Next week: vs. North Alabama (Nov. 17 – 9 p.m.), vs. West Virginia (Nov. 21 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Clemson is always a team in the ACC that sticks around during the regular season and has success in the ACC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. West Virginia will cause Clemson problems, and the Tigers go on to face Alabama and BYU at the beginning of December.
12) Florida State Seminoles
Last week’s ranking: 15 (+3)
Record: 2-1 (0-0)
Last week: L vs. No. 10 Florida (76-78)
Next week: vs. UT Martin (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.), vs. Georgia Southern (Nov. 21 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
The Seminoles kept it close against No. 10 Florida, had two 30+ point wins to start the season, and may be proving themselves slowly. They have a few games before conference play begins that will be good wins and will boost their record to move them from the bottom of the ACC towards the middle.
13) California Golden Bears
Last week’s ranking: 16 (+3)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Fullerton (93-65), L vs. Kansas St. (96-99)
Next week: vs. Presbyterian (Nov. 18 – 10 p.m.), vs. Sacramento St. (Nov. 21 – 10 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
The Golden Bears are one of those teams that have a very easy route into conference play, but are disrupted by early-season losses, like Kansas State. Cal refrains from top 25 matchups in non-conference play, but hits a roadblock when facing Louisville to start the ACC basketball part of their season.
14) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Last week’s ranking: 14 (-)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Southeastern Louisiana (70-60), L vs. Georgia (87-92)
Next week: vs. Georgia Southern (Nov. 18 – 7:30 p.m.), at West Georgia (Nov. 23 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Georgia Tech suffered its first loss of the season against a local foe, Georgia. The Yellow Jackets could be a team that is either a mediocre team in the ACC or at the bottom of the conference. This loss to Georgia shows they may not be that great of a team, but they do have a few matchups down the line that can be easy wins for G Tech.
15) Miami Hurricanes
Last week’s ranking: 10 (-5)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Stetson (102-61), L vs. No. 10 Florida (68-82)
Next week: vs. Elon (Nov. 20 – 7 p.m.), vs. Delaware St. (Nov. 23 – 1 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Miami, which once used to lead the ACC, has slowly declined over the years and has found the bottom half of the conference. With a loss to Florida at the beginning of the season, this ruins the momentum for the Hurricanes, but they do manage to hold off most of the ranked opponents in the ACC.
16) Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Last week’s ranking: 11 (-5)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Eastern Illinois (78-58), L at Ohio State (64-63)
Next week: vs. Bellarmine (Nov. 19 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Notre Dame has shown flashes of being good over the past few years, and even showed some flashes this season so far. With a loss to Ohio State in crunch time, the Fighting Irish could easily struggle this season with a tough stretch of Kansas, Rutgers, Missouri, and TCU.
17) Pittsburgh Panthers
Last week’s ranking: 12 (-5)
Record: 3-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Eastern Michigan (78-66), L vs. West Virginia (49-71)
Next week: vs. Bucknell (Nov. 17 – 7 p.m.), vs. UCF (Nov. 20 – 7 p.m.), vs. Quinnipiac (Nov. 23 – 5 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Pitt lost to West Virginia by 22 last week on the road. The Panthers are destined to be in for a rough season after this loss to West Virginia, and their upcoming matchups with Ohio State and Texas A&M will not help improve their record.
18) Boston College Eagles
Last week’s ranking: 18 (-)
Record: 2-2 (0-0)
Last week: L vs. Central Connecticut (59-60), W vs. Temple (76-71)
Next week: vs. Hampton (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.), vs. Davidson (Nov. 21 – 3:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Central Connecticut
Boston College has already suffered its second loss of the season, and this was to a non-Power 5 team in Central Connecticut. They did turn it around with a win on the road against Temple. The Eagles will struggle the remainder of the season and will have a tough time getting out of the bottom of the ACC basketball power rankings.